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An immense attention is paid to every detail during the harvest at Quinta do Convento. In fact preparations begin as soon as the previous harvest is over. A grape picking system using small 12 kg crates is used for harvesting. Once filled, these go directly from the vine to sorting tables, with previous weight control and returning to the vineyard after proper hygiene.
The grapes are kept unbruised and uncrushed, and not pumped to avoid the risk of oxidation. The vibrating sorting table and the reception areas located above the vats run non-stop, but at a unhurried pace to allow for extremely cautious sorting and absolutely minimal handling of the grapes. This close inspection – the natural persistence of the care and dedication paid on the vineyard throughout the growing season – makes it possible to separate lots according to plot and grape variety with extreme precision, and to define the final blend.
The vibrating sorting table is located behind each destemmer, achieve perfect quality control. Four people sort the uncrushed grapes by hand in order to eliminate all substance other than grapes, including small pieces of stems. This method, although labour-intensive, ensures that only the ripest, healthiest grapes make it to the fermenting vats.
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